


(gasps) and they were roommates!

by blacksuns (orphan_account)



Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Awkwardness, Baby Bisexual, M/M, What If We Were Roommates… And Fell In Love… Haha… Just Kidding! Unless…?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-10-06 19:50:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20512538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/blacksuns
Summary: "Any tips on bagging the man of your dreams?”“Don’t puke on their brand new shoes. They’re not going to be very happy about it, and shoes are so expensive to dry clean. Save yourself the money and don’t eat too much spicy food before your first date. Or confessing to your crush, in your case.”“Noted. Thanks!”





	(gasps) and they were roommates!

**Author's Note:**

  * For [knnvtn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/knnvtn/gifts).

> If you're also me and you're also wondering how this short drabble became a 6k long one-shot, welcome to the club! I also have no idea of how this happened, but here we are! I absolutely live for this pairing, they're so sweet and my current obsession. 
> 
> You know this trope. We all do. But I just wanted to see this with Jacob and Hyunjae. So did my best friend and muse, to whom I gift this humble word vomit I shall call work. Yves and Jinsoul make cameos because I said so, I personally think [Hyunjae and Yves would be revolutionary best friends](https://twitter.com/rapgodwon/status/1166763037128187905). 
> 
> Happy reading! <3

Jacob is good with his hands. He rubs circles on Jaehyun’s back with one hand, holding the back of his shirt with the other, as Jaehyun vomits his most 3 recent meals down the toilet. His skin glistens under the neon lights of the crowded men’s room like some sort of shining party god. Jacob stands there in all the glory of his see-through shirt and tight leather pants, a hand in Jaehyun’s hair; everything to ensure Jaehyun isn’t going to fall into the toilet and drown in his own vomit. He’s good at everything, which is something Jaehyun envies, but he’s especially good at taking care and looking after others.

Jaehyun likes looking at Jacob’s hands. He finds himself staring at his fingers when Jacob lazily strums his guitar, legs spread open on the couch as he tunes it, thin guitar chip pressed between his lips; when he adjusts Jaehyun’s collar and tie around his neck for his very first formal job — read: _internship _— interview; when Jacob fiddles with the hem of one of Jaehyun’s hoodies fresh out of the dryer as he pulls it down his torso and claims it as his own… Jaehyun is always staring.

Truth be told, he stares at Jacob a lot more than he should. The thing with staring is that he soon realizes that Jacob’s hands seem perfect for holding, because for some reason, his brain thinks this is useful information he absolutely needs to know. He needs to know he thinks Jacob’s hands are holdable, and that the lizard part of his brain is yelling, _hold his fucking hand_. It isn’t very heterosexual of him to think his roommate’s hands are holdable, and for a matter of fact, neither is wanting to hold his hand. There’s something so inherently attractive about the way Jacob plays the guitar and sings and breathes so effortlessly all at the same time, which, again, isn’t the most heterosexual thing that has ever crossed his mind. He wonders how someone can be so good with their hands.

Jaehyun is awful with his hands. He’s good at other things. He’s good at breaking expensive liqueur bottles, which sounds like a useless talent to have, but has actually been proven to be quite useful when it comes to knocking out douches who thirst over his roommate. He’s good at running away from his feelings. He’s good at pretending the way Jacob makes him feel means absolutely nothing. He’s good at pretending his stomach doesn’t churn when he sees Jacob kissing other guys.

He’s quite a good liar. That’s probably one of his best talents.

Seeing Jacob with guys shouldn’t bother him half as much as it does — or at all, for that matter. It really isn’t any of his business what Jacob does or doesn’t inside his bedroom, because Jacob is his roommate and a friend, too, and he doesn’t care for any of his friends’ sex life, so it makes no sense for him to be so bothered with the fact Jacob occasionally brings guys home. This weird feeling in his gut when he sees other guys with Jacob or leaving their apartment at odd hours in the night, is, needless to say, out of place. Younghoon, his best friend and platonic soulmate, is gay, and he never felt weird about him having a boyfriend. He doesn’t understand why seeing and knowing Jacob is fooling around with random guys bothers him so much.

“Hey, Jaehyun,” Jacob says, voice so soft from all the ten tequila shots he took earlier that night, firm grip around his roommate’s arm. There are various facets to drunk Jacob: horny drunk, obnoxiously loud drunk, _I will only get off this table if you call the police _drunk, _yes, I gave your boyfriend a lap dance, he should be thankful _drunk and the worst type of all: clingy drunk. Jacob wants to be held and kissed and told he’s loved. And in nights like this, that Jaehyun is the only person within arm reach, he will likely cling to Jaehyun like he’s the only person in existence and latch around his arm like an octopus. Jacob’s face is so physically close to his, Jaehyun feels his stomach fluttering with butterflies and it scares the living crap out of him that he can feel things like this for a _dude_, “You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah, dude.” He scoffs, trying to get Jacob to let go of his arm, because it’s not like he’s going anywhere when Jacob is _this_ drunk, “Glad the feeling is mutual.”

“Nah. Stop the no homo shit. Tell me you love me.” Jacob says, drunk and demanding, and Jaehyun knows he doesn’t have to say it back, but he’s seen drunk Jacob throw tantrums before and he doesn’t want that to happen inside a cab on their way home. The taxi driver looks like he’s seen enough of drunk couples arguing inside his cab for the night, and Jaehyun doesn’t want them to be another one. They’re not really a couple (this tiny voice in Jaehyun’s head screams _‘a couple of besties!’ _which reminds him he needs to stop hanging out around Kevin **ASAP**), but that’s beside the point. “You’re my best friend and I love you. Now say it back.”

He sighs, pretending to be rather annoyed than nervous. Jacob is too drunk to realize he’s blushing. “I love you, Jacob.”

“That’s more like it.” Jacob says, then collapses on his seat, head falling on top of Jaehyun’s shoulder.

* * *

Jaehyun wakes up in Jacob’s bed. This isn’t the first time they have slept in the same bed; it happens a lot more often than Jaehyun realizes when he stops and thinks about it, when either of them is willing to get up from the other’s very comfortable and inviting bed to go back to their respective room. Jacob is nice and warm, and Jaehyun isn’t complaining, despite the visible drool mark running down Jacob’s chin and up the sleeve of Jaehyun’s shirt. They didn’t change and their clothes reek of alcohol.

He tries to lift up his arms to stretch out his sore limbs, but Jacob is asleep and holding onto his arm for dear life, so he allows himself to enjoy a few moments of peaceful silence. It feels nice. He could get used to this.

(Jaehyun wishes this, whatever this is, would last longer.)

It’s weirdly easy to get used to the idea of the comfort that comes with sleeping in Jacob’s arms, the comfortable silence in Jacob’s bedroom, the sheer intimacy involved in sharing a bed with someone. There’s something so intimate, so familiar, that Jaehyun feels weirded out by the fact he’s so physically close to Jacob. Yes, they’ve hugged and cuddled before, but this is different — this is crossing the very thin line between platonic and romantic, and Jaehyun doesn’t know if he’s supposed to be feeling this happy for having a sleepy Jacob in his arms. It definitely doesn’t feel platonic, at least not anymore.

Jacob wakes up sometime in the middle of Jaehyun’s daydream. And if he notices Jaehyun clinging onto him with more insistence, touch lingering his skin, refusing to let go of his wrist as Jacob gets up, he doesn’t say it. Jaehyun ignores the emptiness in his stomach as he watches Jacob pull away without a single word and goes on with his hangover, stay at home day feeling awfully sober.

* * *

Walking into your roommate and his dick appointment making out in your living room couch is definitely an experience. It’s far from what Jaehyun would consider a warm welcome home after spending the weekend at his parents’ house, and quite the hard way to find out his roommate’s dick appointment would be spending the night (or at least a few hours) at their place. But Jaehyun doesn’t let the visible erection in Jacob’s dick appointment’s pants discourage him from coughing uncomfortably from the kitchen, hiding behind bags of groceries and homemade kimchi, just to watch them break apart in a matter of seconds and awkwardly sit up on the couch.

Jacob coughs behind his hand. “I’m sorry about this. I didn’t think you’d be home so early. We will, uh, take this to my bedroom. Sorry again, Jaehyun. Good night.”

Jacob quickly introduces him to Juyeon from the basketball team before hurriedly urging Juyeon to follow him to his room, and locking the door shut.

Jaehyun feels like he’s going to throw up. He feels sick all of a sudden, all uncomfortable and grossed out, and he reprimands himself for such thoughts, because there’s no reason for him to have such a strong reaction, and he allows himself some forgiveness given the element of surprise involved. He didn’t think he’d see Jacob fucking some random dude in their couch first thing after he got home. He’s just surprised. That’s all.

* * *

Jacob calls Juyeon a cab a few hours later. Jaehyun is pretending to be asleep, turning and tossing in bed instead of sleeping, but he can’t sleep. He can’t stop thinking about that guy, Juyeon, and the things he might have done to Jacob. It isn’t none of his business, really, to think about what Jacob and Juyeon did in the confined space between the four walls of Jacob’s bedroom, and he doesn’t want to imagine what they might have done, but he can’t help it. He’s just grateful Juyeon isn’t staying the night like some other guys Jacob has hooked up with have. Having to stare at Jacob’s dick appointment during breakfast is the last thing he needs on a Monday morning.

* * *

It doesn’t take much for Jaehyun to decide he definitely does not like Juyeon. It’s nothing exactly personal, he claims to himself as he tries to work on his argument to dislike a guy that is seemingly harmless and is doing nothing wrong, it’s just a feeling in his gut that tells him Jacob deserves better than some generic looking jock. The worst part about it? Juyeon isn’t some generic looking jock, no, the guy has to be handsome and nice and good at sports and also fucking smart. He almost feels bad for not liking him. _Almost. _He still tells himself he hates him, as he scrolls down Mr. Perfect’s Instagram feed, dissecting the poor guy’s life based on his Instagram account, and purposely ignores the likes and heart emoticons associated with Jacob’s Instagram handle.

Turns out Jaehyun is also awful with timing, as it seems, because Lee Juyeon from the basketball team, who Jaehyun found after much digging through Jacob’s likes on the activity page, is no longer in the picture. Which is supposedly a good thing, right? Well, wrong. Because Jacob isn’t just hooking up with random guys anymore, no, he’s in some sort of friends with benefits situation with someone Jaehyun knows, which means Jacob not only has these creeps coming over every weekend, and also one dude that is at their place all the goddamn time.

That one dude at their place almost all the time is Changmin, Jacob’s obnoxiously extra loud (in the quite literal sense) from the dance department and now his friends with benefits kind of friend, who eats all of their food and bakes his very own cheesecakes in their over because the one at his place doesn’t work. He’s also Kevin’s best friend and roommate, which means the two of them are always there, bickering over Changmin’s poor baking skills and Kevin apparently not being able to make a decent cheesecake crust for hours, and gushing over Jacob and their cute friendship antics. And who has to clean up when they leave after spending an ungodly amount of time at their place? Jaehyun, of course.

It does annoy the living hell out of him. Both the friends with benefits situation with Changmin, Kevin inviting himself over all the goddamn time, and the random hookups Jaehyun sees sneaking out of their apartment in odd hours in the morning; it’s a combination of factors, really, and long story short, it bothers him quite a lot. It gets under his skin in a way that’s both new and terrifying; he’s never cared about any of his friends’ sex life like he seems to care about Jacob’s, and all of anger filled moments seem to revolve around Jacob being with a guy. He tests his theory by agreeing to let Younghoon and Chanhee drag him to one of their dates as their professional third wheel, and he feels absolutely nothing. He doesn’t feel angry or upset or uncomfortable watching them make out in front of him. _Yes,_ it’s kind of annoying to see how disgustingly in love and perfect for each other they are, but he agreed to this, so he can’t complain about the over the top PDA.

He knows exactly what it is, but if he will come around to admitting he’s actually jealous, that’s a whole different story.

* * *

The thing about feelings is that, no matter how hard you try to run away from them, they don’t go away. Jaehyun still feels his stomach churning whenever he sees some random stranger tighten a possessive grip around Jacob’s waist. He still feels like puking when he sees Jacob seeing some dude. He usually just locks himself in his room and wishes the guy would leave, letting himself drown in self-pity and counting the minutes until said guy finally leaves.

It’s starting to affect their friendship and their home dynamics too, and Jaehyun knows Jacob has noticed that he leaves early morning to run some imaginary errand whenever once of Jacob’s hookups is sleeping over, and that he always comes back home late, just to avoid walking in on Jacob and whoever he might have over.

Jacob is no idiot. _Of course _he notices the very obvious change in Jaehyun’s behavior. But he doesn’t say anything, and Jaehyun hates that he knows it’s bothering Jacob and he still won’t act on it.

This isn’t going to end well.

* * *

It goes down when he arrives home on a particular muggy Wednesday. Jacob is there, and so is Sangyeon, Younghoon’s ex-boyfriend, who seems to be Jacob’s the most recent addition to his dick appointment contact list. Sangyeon is about to leave, leaning in for a quick peck before he walks out their door, but he stops right on his tracks when he sees Jaehyun standing in the kitchen and greets him politely, trying to make small talk before leaving. Jaehyun can’t lie and say Sangyeon wasn’t decently nice to him, like he always is to everyone, but for some reason, Jaehyun can’t hold back on being a fucking asshat and ends up being rude to him.

“Why were you such a dick to Sangyeon?” Jacob inquires, pissed, and rightfully so. Jaehyun _did _act like a dick for no reason, and he has no reasonable excuse to make up for his shitty attitude. Oh, God, Jaehyun hates himself for this, but he simply can’t admit to Jacob that he’s jealous, he’s too full of pride and ego, and there’s no way he’s letting Jacob step all over his already hurt ego because of _fucking Lee Sangyeon_. “Do you have a problem with me sleeping with other guys? Is that what this is about?”

“No.” Jaehyun says through gritted teeth.

“You used to have that fuckbuddy of yours over all the time. You’re in no position to complain about my dick appointments coming over.” It’s his reply, and Jaehyun hates that Jacob is right to an extent. The difference is that Jaehyun had one girl over quite often for a few months when they first started living together, and Jacob has had a different guy over every weekend for months in a row now. But Jaehyun knows best than arguing with Jacob. He knows he was mean for no reason. Jacob has every right to be mad at him for being rude to his dick appointment. “Really, dude. What’s your problem? What’s up with you lately?”

**_You. _**_You’re my fucking problem. _“Nothing. I’m just tired. I’ve had a bad day today. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take it out on your, _uh_, friend. I don’t care who you sleep with, really. Again, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m going to Sunwoo’s place to cool off. Don’t call me.”

“Okay.” Jaehyun bites his own tongue before he says something very, very rude, and very uncalled for too. It would only make things worse, and if there’s one thing he doesn’t need, is to be on Jacob’s bad side. He knows how the angelic, supportive friend image vanishes in a second when Jacob is angry. It’s scary.

Right before Jacob sets his foot out the door, he casually says, “And you’ll be okay if I sleep with him as long as we fuck at his place and not ours, right?”

“Like I told you, Jacob, it’s none of my business what you do at someone else’s place. Just give me a break, please. I don’t need to see you sucking face with some guy every time I get home.”

“Fine. See you around, Jaehyun.”

* * *

Jacob doesn’t show up to their plans later that night. They have this thing where they gather at their apartment with their best friend Younghoon for a movie marathon on a Friday night that stretches itself onto a weekend full of fried chicken and pizza and lazing around at home, binge watching whatever shitty reality show Mnet tries to shove down the audience’s throat that month or watching the same five romance movies they always do because they’re too picky to watch anything else; no other friends, no boyfriends or girlfriends or dick appointments. Just the three of them. But Jacob doesn’t seem to care about that, having left Jaehyun on read despite all the messages asking on his whereabouts, even ignoring the call when Jaehyun called him. Knowing Jacob, he knows he just watched the phone ring on his hand and did absolutely nothing about it, and that pisses Jaehyun even more.

Jacob has never blown him off like that. He did text Younghoon a quick apology, saying there that was an emergency with a friend that was rushed to the hospital and he wouldn’t be able to make it. Said he’d probably stay at the hospital over the weekend to look after his friend, too. It makes Jaehyun feel terrible. This is classic Jacob behavior when he’s avoiding someone, staying as physically far from them as possible, not picking up phone calls and coming up with inexcusable excuses, like someone being rushed to the hospital or having caught a virus from his roommate. Jaehyun never thought he would be the one Jacob was avoiding, and it makes him feel like shit. But this is his fault. He knows he made Jacob feel like he was judging him for sleeping with guys. He kind of deserves being blown off. Younghoon doesn’t, but this is Jacob’s way of showing him he better start feeling sorry so he doesn’t have to lie to Younghoon again.

* * *

The worst part about Jacob being a Gemini is that he can be rather unpredictable. A little too faced, too, if you’d ask Jaehyun, now that he just watches Jacob act like nothing happened and treat him like he always did. It’s one thing he’s starting to realize about Jacob, now that he’s finally coming to terms that _yes, he does stare a lot at his very handsome and very attractive roommate, and what about it?_; they’re both equally bad at confrontations, and he knows they won’t talk about this until it’s too late to remediate the situation. Jaehyun worries about possibly messing things up between them if he keeps reacting as poorly as he did when he saw Jacob and Sangyeon kissing.

He loves Jacob, he’s an absolutely wonderful friend and a very tidy roommate to live with, and he doesn’t want things to change. He likes what they have, whatever it is that they have, and he wouldn’t like to move out of their very dear apartment that is home to some many funny and important memories of Jaehyun’s early adult life, but he knows Jacob will be hurt if he knew what goes on in Jaehyun’s head whenever he sees Jacob with other guys.

It’s just something he might have to do, if he wants to remain being friends with Jacob, he might have to move out and live with blissful ignorance whenever these weird feelings in his chest go away. He can live not knowing anything about Jacob’s sex life. He can live his life without thinking about Jacob at all.

Yeah. _He can do that._

(He absolutely cannot do it.)

* * *

“I heard Jacob has a nice dick.” Jung Jinsol says nonchalantly from across the library table where Jaehyun also happens to be sitting, not even taking her eyes off her thick exercise booklet. Jaehyun coughs uncomfortably. He wonders how no one else in the dead quiet library hear Jinsol’s very obscene remark about his — _friend’s? roommate’s? crush’s? _Jaehyun doesn’t know what Jacob is to him anymore — dick.

“Sorry?”

“I’ve heard things about you. About your dilemma.” She replies, pushing the bridge of her glasses up her nose. “Thought I’d share this very random bit of information as some sort of incentive. Younghoon was the one who told me Jacob has a pretty nice dick, by the way, before you ask me how an ace girl knows so much about dick. I don’t know anything. I’m just telling you what I’ve heard. But don’t tell Younghoon I told you that. It’s our secret, okay?”

“Why does Younghoon know that?” Jaehyun asks in confusion. How does Jung Jinsol, certified nerd, the best student in her department, knows so much about his love life? Since when are Jinsol and Younghoon friends? Why does Younghoon know about Jacob’s dick? And most importantly, why did Younghoon feel the need to share such details about someone else’s genitalia with Jinsoul? God, he’s so beyond confused. What the fuck, honestly. “Why do _you _know that, Jinsol?”

“That’s irrelevant right now, and also not the point I’m trying to make. What I mean is,” Jinsol says, putting down her pen and looking at him through the fake lenses of her spectacles, “you’re just avoiding a very obvious realization at this point. Like… You’re running around a very simple conclusion like a headless chicken. Liking a guy isn’t the end of the world, really.”

“How do you even know that?”

“I’m best friends with your best friend.” She says back, as if it’s obvious, and then it clicks. Younghoon found out about his crush because he’s 1) not as stupid as everyone seems to think he is, and 2) he’s Jaehyun’s best friend, for fuck’s sake, of course he would notice his best friend keeps swooning over someone they both know. He told Jinsoul about it because he’s simply uncapable of keeping his mouth shut, and there they are. “That’s how I know. Are you going to do something about it?”

“I might. I mean, I should, right? Yeah. I should do something about it. Any tips on bagging the man of your dreams?”

“Don’t puke on their brand new shoes. They’re not going to be very happy about it, and shoes are so expensive to dry clean. Save yourself the money and don’t eat too much spicy food before your first date. Or confessing to your crush, in your case.”

“Noted. Thanks!”

* * *

It’s quite a terrible way to start questioning his sexuality, really. By having Jung Jinsol, of all people in the world, tell him he’s being an idiot and running around a very simple conclusion like a headless chicken. The imagery isn’t exactly nice to imagine, but it works.

What if this repulsion that he feels whenever Jacob has guys over is a sign that he’s jealous of the guys Jacob is seeing, because he secretly wants to be in their place?

What if he isn’t a homophobic prick, and just a confused baby bisexual overwhelmed with his own ever-growing feelings for his best friend and roommate?

There are so many what ifs, so many questions spiraling in his head, and he overthinks every small thing that comes with the realization that he might not be as straight as he thought he was, because he’s a Virgo, and that’s what Virgos do, according to Jacob, the reason for most of Jaehyun’s overthinking and incoming sexuality crisis. The world as he knows is crumbling right in front of his eyes — he was always _sure_that he was straight. He grew up knowing that someday he would meet the love of his life, assumingly a girl, fall in love, get married and start a family with her. He’s liked and dated girls throughout his entire life, and he was comfortable with the idea that he was to settle down with the girl he loved and spend the rest of his life with her.

Thinking of another man as attractive, thinking of another man as a possible romantic partner is, for short, terrifying. Not that anyone truly cares if he thinks Jacob Bae is hot, but questioning straight, baby bisexual Lee Jaehyun finds the fact he considers Jacob even remotely attractive his worst possible nightmare. And now, that he’s questioning his very own feelings, he feels an imminent sexuality crisis coming his way.

Jaehyun has no idea of what he’s going to do with himself if Jacob ever gets a boyfriend. Just the thought of it makes him want to cry.

So Jaehyun calls the only person who could help him in a possible baby bisexual identity crisis. Ha Sooyoung.

* * *

“Okay. Picture this. A friend of mine lives with his gay roommate. He’s straight, by the way, so keep that in mind. He’s been roommates with this guy for over 2 years now, and they’re really close friends. My friend never had a problem with him being gay, but lately the fact his roommate keeps bringing his hook ups and dates home is really getting under his skin. Like, it’s really bothering him that his roommate keeps bringing these random dudes to their apartment. But at the same time, my friend’s other best friend is gay, and he’s never cared about him dating other guys.” Sooyoung takes a deep breath. She puts down her iced coffee and tries her best to hide the incoming laugh that’s threatening to scape. Jaehyun wonders what’s so funny. “So my question is, is my friend being homophobic?”

Sooyoung punches him in the shoulder. _Hard. _“Ouch! What was that for?”

“You have a weird way of saying you’re in love with your roommate, you absolute buffoon.” She says back. Jaehyun’s face must have been really funny, because she giggles behind her hand as she takes another sip of her coffee. She’s clearly enjoying this. Jaehyun feels like calling Haseul would’ve been a better idea now. “Don’t look at me like that. You _are_ in love with him, you just haven’t realized it yet.”

“But I’m straight.”

“You just told me you get jealous of your roommate’s dick appointments. That doesn’t sound very heterosexual to me.” Sooyoung replies, stirring her drink with her reusable metal straw. Jaehyun clicks his tongue; this is classic Sooyoung behavior, buying reusable metal straws because it was a small step toward reducing plastic waste in the ocean, but God forbid Sooyoung admitting that she only bought those stupid straws because she knew it’d make Haseul happy. Jaehyun knows this because he got a text message from Haseul asking him how many straws he’d like to buy when she mass ordered a bunch for herself and her friends. He stares at the plastic green straw and thinks that maybe having called Sooyoung was for the best. Haseul would have stabbed him in the neck with his plastic straw. “I’ve been in your situation before. Remember when I thought I was straight? Lying to myself when all I ever wanted was to make out with Haseul in the girls’ locker room. Tsc. And now we’re here. Maybe if you weren’t such an idiot when it comes to your love life, you’d be dating Jacob by now.”

“But I’m not sure if I wanna date him. Heck, I’m not even sure if I like men, for fuck’s sake. Like… How am I supposed to know if I like him?”

“The same you know when you like a girl? It’s literally the same thing.” Comes her reply, “Imagine this _very hypothetical_ situation. Let’s suppose you like me. Or Jacob is a girl, I don’t know, God knows if you’d like to see him in a skirt. Either way, you have a crush on a girl. How do you know you like her?”

“I wanna spend time with her and make her laugh and know I’m the one making her laugh. I wanna hold her hand and maybe kiss her, but like… I just wanna be with her. You know? Of course you know. It’s the same thing you felt when you started liking Haseul.”

“Do you wanna do all these things with Jacob?”

Yes. No. _Maybe? _**Probably yes. ****_Definitely yes. _**“Yes?”

“Then!” She hits both her hands on the table in excitement. “There’s your answer. You like him. BAM. Welcome to the world, baby bisexual! I’m honored to be a part of your path to enlightenment and living life to the fullest. Now get out of here and go get your man.”

“Okay, okay, I got it, I’m going! Tell Haseul I said hi.” He says, as Sooyoung piles his stuff on his arms and urges him to leave the café so she can go meet her girlfriend. “You should have brought Haseul along. Bring her next time, maybe.”

“Yeah, right.” She scoffs, “Haseul would’ve stabbed you in the neck with that plastic straw of yours.”

“I know. But you would’ve protected me, right?”

“Ask Jacob to protect you.”

“Okay! I will! I’m leaving, Sooyoungie, don’t kick me out like you did last time! I’ll text you when I finally manage to get Jacob to be my boyfriend so we can go out on a double date!”

* * *

Younghoon is the only person that would pick up his phone no matter how late or how early Jaehyun called him. It’s a good thing at the same time that it is a bad thing, because Younghoon will not _not_pick up the phone, and it’s a bad thing because it’s 3am and he’s quietly listening to Jaehyun cry over how in love with Jacob he is like the good friend he is. Best friend culture at its finest.

“Am I in love with Jacob?” He sighs, rolling over to his side.

_“I don’t know, man. Are you?”_

“I think I am.”

_“That’s good. I’m happy for you. You haven’t liked anyone in a while. Jacob is a good guy. Have you told him already?”_

“Not yet. I’m thinking of what I should say.” He says back, “How did you confess to Chanhee?”

_“I didn’t have to confess. He just looked at me and he knew I liked him, and I was pretty confident he liked me. We just laughed and kissed.”_

“Do you think Jacob will kiss me?”

_“Do you want him to?”_

“Yeah. I think I want him to kiss me.”

_“You think?”_

“I want Jacob to kiss me.” He says, firmer than before.

_“That’s more like it. Good night, my dear friend. Let me know how it goes, Hyunjae-yah!”_

* * *

Confessing is actually a lot harder than Jaehyun remembers. It’s probably because he hasn’t dealt with romantic feelings for someone in a long while, so he’s feeling a bit rusty when it comes to being effortlessly cool and a good flirt at the same time. That’s the thing with Jacob. He does anything as little as breathe and makes a total mess out of Jaehyun. The sole fact Jacob is a real person that exists in the same time and space as he does is already something that makes Jaehyun consider himself very fucking lucky.

Jaehyun sits through their entire Tarantino marathon — Younghoon’s stomach is too weak for bloody movies like Tarantino’s, so it’s just the two of them watching all of the director’s nine movies in the comfort of their couch — holding his breath, waiting for the perfect time to confess, but said time never comes as they watch Leonardo di Caprio and Bratt Pitt kill three teenagers in the last fifteen minutes of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. As the ending credits roll by, Jaehyun takes a deep breath and gets himself ready to confess. He needs to confess right here and right now before he starts overthinking it like a stereotypical Virgo and chickens out. Plus, there’s nothing that says romance quite like graphic violence.

“Can we talk?”

“Sure. What’s up?”

“Do you remember when I was a dick to Sangyeon for no reason at all and you got mad pissed at me?” Jacob narrows his eyes. “I… I was jealous. Not that I would have trouble in finding people to sleep with me. It’s not what you’re thinking, I swear. I was actually jealous of him because he was sleeping with you. Because I— I like you, Jacob. And seeing you with him made me angry. Because I wanted to be the one with you.”

“You like me? As in, _like like_?” Jacob seems to be caught with his guard down. “You like me romantically? Is that what I’m getting? This isn’t funny, Jaehyun, if you’re joking, I swear—”

“I wouldn’t joke about something as serious as this. I mean it.” Jaehyun says, and he feels like he’s running around, running out of breath, unable to form a cohesive sentence now that Jacob has his full attention on him. “I like you. Like, _really_. I really like you. I’ve liked you for a while, actually, it just took me a very long time to figure it out. At first I thought I was being homophobic because I always got so upset when I saw you with other guys but then Jinsol called me a headless chicken running around a very obvious conclusion and Sooyoung yelled at me for being so oblivious and... Here we are, I guess.”

“I like you too.”

“What did you say?”

“I said,” Jacob says again, cupping Jaehyun’s face with his hands, with a huge smile plastered in his face, “I like you too.”

“You do?”

“I do. I’ve liked you for a while too, but I thought I had no chance because you were such an oblivious straight guy, so I tried to get over it and move on.” He admits shyly. It’s the first time Jaehyun has seen truly flustered and nervous. Jacob is usually so confident, so bold and out there, Jaehyun doesn’t remember having seen him this nervous around anyone before. It’s okay. Jaehyun is also really nervous. “I can’t believe this is happening. Pinch me. I think I’m daydreaming about my roommate confessing his feelings for me.”

“Oh, baby, it so is happening.” Jaehyun jokes, which earns him a playful nudge in the shoulder. “I wanna... Give this a try. _Us. _Give us a try. If you want, of course.”

“Okay. We can try. But let’s take things slow. For now. One thing at a time.”

“Slow sounds good.

Jaehyun feels giddy with excitement when Jacob beams the brightest smile at him. Just at him. He feels like he should run to the top of their building and yell at the top of his lungs that he did it, he managed to confess to his crush without making too much of a fool of himself, and even if he had embarrassed himself so terribly to a point of no return, it wouldn’t matter. He would still be completely over the Moon, smiling oh so fondly at Jacob, because God, oh God, Jacob Bae is his fucking boyfriend.

** _Suck on that, world._ **

“Can I kiss you?”

“No one has ever asked me if they could kiss me before.” Jaehyun giggles against Jacob’s mouth, enlacing his fingers behind Jacob’s neck.

“I’m a nice guy.” He says, sliding his hands around Jaehyun’s waist, and _oh, dear Lord, _it’s happening. Jacob Bae is about to kiss him until he passes out and _he can’t fucking wait. _“Thought I’d ask, since it’s your first time kissing another guy.”

“Can you kiss me, then, babe?”

“I can. Do you want me to?”

“Please.”

_Plot twist? _Turns out Jaehyun has no problems with Jacob kissing guys as long as it’s him he’s kissing.


End file.
